Tag: architecture

Event Wish List Roundup: August 2020

The events I would be going to if I wasn’t busy studying for the ARE 5.0.

If you don’t want to read the whole post and skip to the events, go here.

I’m a big fan of Dave Ramsey, and one of his favorite quotes is,

“If you will live like no one else, later you can live like no one else.”

Dave Ramsey

He has his own explanation for what that means, but for myself, it means that to achieve results that no one else is seeing, you have to do what no one else is doing.

Michael Riscica of Young Architect mentioned in his “How to Pass the ARE 5.0” presentation in Washington, D.C. (which he is hosting again virtually, you should check it out) that passing these exams requires sacrifices. One of the biggest challenges for me in terms of making time to study is social engagements and architecture events.

For social engagements, I feel like it’s definitely normal to want to spend time with your family and friends, even virtually, especially in these lonely times with COVID. I also use my time with friends to unwind and vent about my week and be less in my own mind. But I’ve found that even when I go, at the end of the day, I’m wracked with guilt when I think about all the time that I’ve lost from studying for what is supposed to be my main focus.

In terms of architecture events, I have a variety of reasons for why they’ve taken up a huge part of my free time:

  • Networking and connecting with like-minded professional
  • Being able to support other architects in their journey
  • Getting additional experience hours to complete my AXP
  • Learning new skills that will make me more competitive in the marketplace
  • A lot of events are being hosted virtually now, giving me greater access to events, such as building tours and local forums, that I never would have been able to attend in person, pre-COVID
  • I want to remain connected in the industry when so many people are becoming disengaged due to distance and canceled events
  • I want to be supportive of social and racial justice events within the industry
  • I want to learn more about the history of architecture and preservation from regional experts who I would not have had the chance to see in person
  • Since events are virtual, I can easily attend during lunch hours without having to worry about the commute time back and forth

Whew, that list was longer than I thought it would be. Clearly I have a lot of solid reasons. However, as good as many of these reasons are, it still misses the point. Not matter how many events I attend, or forums I’m on, or tours I go to, none of these will make me a fully-fledged, licensed, registered, legal architect. But passing the ARE 5.0 definitely will. Even if I took a 100 construction tours for AXP CE experience, NCARB only accepts 20 hours obtained that way, so the impact would be very limited.

So let’s talk about strategy. My new aim is to not attend any more architecture industry events (unless I’m presenting) until I pass my AREs. My main challenge with this is that my social media feeds are curated to specifically send me information about news and interesting events on a regular basis. So what can I do with this information?

I turn it into an event roundup that the readers of my blog can use, obviously!

So I’ll be trying to create lists of architecture, design, historic preservation, racial justice and equity events I wish I could be attending, but I can’t because I’m studying for my ARE’s. They’re not in chronological order, just listed as I find them. I’ll be updating these lists throughout the month, so make sure to check back for any updates.

Event Wish List Roundup: August 2020

Architecture in Turbulent Times: Equity, Environment, Health, & Economy

Date: August 12, 2020

Time: 12:00 pm -5:00 pm EST

Price: $49

The last few months have catapulted the world into uncharted territory. The simultaneous crises of climate change, COVID-19, a looming economic depression, and systemic racial injustice have exposed structural failings that architecture, and society, must address. It’s a perfect storm that has created an unprecedented call for change. Where do we go from here?

This one-day virtual learning event is centered around change. It’s designed to help you confront these challenges and change your practice and the architecture profession for the better. Twenty sessions dive into the important, intersecting issues of equity, the economy, the environment, and public health. You’ll learn from a diverse range of experts in architecture and beyond—architects, climate champions, civic leaders, leading academics, and more. Don’t miss this event, packed with the brave ideas and honest dialogue that architecture needs now.

Your $49 ticket includes all day-of live programming, access to on-demand sessions for 60 days, and access to recordings of the live sessions for 60 days.

Earns up to 14.5 AIA LUs / RIBA and 6.25 AIA LUs / HSW.

You can find a link to the schedule here, and the link to register is here.

*There is also a scholarship for this event, available to NOMA members. Visit this link for further details.

THE MEMORIAL TO THE ENSLAVED LABORERS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA

Date: August 12, 2020

Time: 4:00pm EST

Price: Free

The design of a new Memorial to Enslaved Laborers (MEL) on the grounds of the University of Virginia marks a critical moment to address the complex history of the University – and of the country. It directly responds to a deep need to address an untold and uncomfortable history – one that is still very much a difficult, though necessary, national conversation on race. The goal of the Memorial is to create a physical place of remembrance and a symbolic acknowledgement of a difficult past and offers a place of learning and a place of healing.

The Memorial was designed as part of a collaboration between Howeler + Yoon Architects, Studio&, Gregg Bleam Landscape Architect, Eto Otitigbe, and had thoughtful input from many more. During this program, Alice Raucher and Mary Hughes (UVA Office of the Architect), Mabel Wilson (Studio&), and J. Meejin Yoon (Höweler + Yoon Architects) will discuss the unique process that made this project possible.

The session will describe the momentum of the project, beginning with student-led initiatives as early as 2010, the ideas competition, final design resolution, and the guiding work of the President’s Commission on Slavery and the University (PCSU). Participants will also learn of the robust community engagement process, including descendants of the enslaved and how the shared vision informed each element of the Memorial’s design.

Earn 1 AIA LU | HSW

You can register for the Zoom webinar here.

PROFS & PINTS ONLINE: THE WICKEDNESS OF THE THREE-FIFTHS CLAUSE

Date: August 4, 2020

Time: 7:00pm to 9:00pm EST

Price: $12

Profs and Pints Online presents: “The Wickedness of the Three-Fifths Clause,” a deep dive into the troubling hidden history of the 1787 federal Constitution, with Rick Bell, professor of history at the University of Maryland.

The original United States Constitution looked both ways. Its preamble announces its purpose to secure “the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity,” an important acknowledgement that liberty is the goal and right of all citizens. Yet, most constitutional scholars regard the 1787 Constitution as being vigorously pro-slavery, something that becomes apparent when we take a long hard look at its infamous Three-Fifths Clause.

Be on hand as Rick Bell, a history professor who has given thrilling Profs and Pints talks on the Hamilton musical and on Benjamin Franklin, returns to the virtual stage to explore how the Three-Fifths Clause came into being. He’ll look at how the Constitutional delegates did their work, reconstruct all of the contemporary opposition that their work generated, and consider the legacy of clauses like Three-Fifths in our post-slavery world.

Far more insidious than is commonly understood, the Three-Fifths Clause wove slaveholder power into the fabric of each of all three branches of government—executive, legislative, and judicial—shaping every aspect of federal policy regarding slavery for decades to come. And it turns out that Three-Fifths clause was just one of almost a dozen clauses in the original Constitution that affected the relationships of the government of the United States to slavery and the slave trade. Through the chemistry of those other clauses, the many delegates to the 1787 Constitutional Convention who were slaveholders themselves, or who were slavery-dependent or slavery-adjacent, worked to prop up and protect that institution.

“Considering all circumstances,” one slave-owning delegate later boasted, “we have made the best terms for the security of this species of property it was in our power to make.”

The Bill of Rights, a list of ten amendments added to the Constitution in 1791, recognized freedom of speech, of the press, of religion, and of petition. Those freedoms would come to serve as major channels for antislavery action and expression in the decades before the Civil War, helping give rise to the forces that eventually would bring an end to slavery and the Three-Fifths Clause. Yet the damage done by that clause haunts us today. (Ticket: $12. A recorded version of this talk will remain available online at the link given here.)

This talk will be held online via Crowdcast. You can purchase your tickets here.

FAIRFAX COUNTY NAACP: TOWNHALL ON SYSTEMIC RACISM WITH DR. SCOTT BRABAND

Date: August 5, 2020

Time: 6:30pm to 7:30pm EST

Price: Free

Join us for our rescheduled townhall on systemic racism with Fairfax County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Scott Brabrand. We’re excited to have Dr. Brabrand engage in this crucial discussion on systemic racism and equity issues within our public schools.

From academic achievement, enrollment at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, to the School Resource Officer program and the school-to-prison pipeline, systemic racism effects our children’s lives every day. This will be a civil discourse where we can openly talk about our and our kids’ experiences, ask questions, and talk about what change looks like.

Please RSVP at: fairfaxnaacp.org/upcoming-events or watch on FB Live: facebook.com/fairfaxnaacp/live

AIA NY: VOICES OF EQUITY, DIVERSITY, AND INCLUSION: CHAMPIONING CHANGE

Date: August 20, 2020

Time: 6:30pm to 8:00pm

Price:

AIANY Member: Free
AIA Long Island Member: Free
AIA Member (not AIANY or AIA LI): $5
Student with Valid .edu Email Address: Free
General Public: $10

In light of the Black Lives Matter movement, and in support of the ongoing effort to improve our profession to achieve Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) in our workplace and our industry, WIA is hosting a panel with four extraordinary women who are leading and championing change through their various meaningful and impactful organizations.

Please join the AIA New York and the AIA Long Island Women in Architecture Committees in this important panel discussion with three prominent voices of EDI: Bolanle Williams-Olley, Danei Cesario AIA, RIBA, NCARB, NOMA, and Pascale Sablan AIA, NOMA, LEED AP. They will share their initiatives in promoting Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion and offer suggestions, ideas, and actions on how each one of us can contribute to building an equitable profession. Julia Gamolina will be moderating the discussion, and will also highlight her work and dedication in making women in our industry more visible through her online platform Madame Architect.

Register here: https://calendar.aiany.org/2020/07/22/voices-of-equity-diversity-and-inclusion-championing-change/

Panelists:
Bolanle Williams-Olley, Chief Financial Officer, Mancini Duffy; Founder, SheBuildsWaves, SheBuildLives & REACH Nigeria
Danei Cesario AIA, RIBA, NCARB, NOMA, Project Manager, SOM; Founder, WALLEN + daub
Pascale Sablan AIA, NOMA, LEED AP, Senior Associate, S9ARCHITECTURE

Moderator:
Julia Gamolina, Associate AIA, Director of Strategy, Trahan Architects; Founder & Editorial Director, Madame Architect

1,5 LU Credits.

TEXAS FREEDOM COLONIES PROJECT COFFEE TALK: HONORING OUR ANCESTORS – BURIAL GROUNDS, CEMETERIES AND FINAL RESTING PLACES

Date: August 21, 2020

Time: 11:00am EST

Price: Free

For this month’s Coffee Talk, our guests will be discussing the status of African American burial grounds, cemeteries and final resting places of our ancestors. Preservation work is often fueled by the veneration of our ancestors work.

Guests will include:
Dr. Antoinette Harrell
Genealogist/Local Historian/Peonage Researcher

Dr. Tara Dudley
Architectural Historian & Lecturer (University of Texas – Austin)

Diana Hernandez
University of Texas Master’s Candidate

Jennifer Blanks, MS
TAMU Doctoral Student & Founder of The Cemetery Sista.

Real Life. Real Issues. Real People.

You can participate in this talk via Live Video by The Texas Freedom Colonies Project.

STRONG TOWNS: INNOVATIONS IN NATURALLY AFFORDABLE HOUSING VIRTUAL SUMMIT

Date: August 11 – 12, 2020

Time: 8:00am – 11:00PM

Price: Free

Strong Towns president Chuck Marohn will deliver his lecture Breaking out of the Housing Trap at the Innovations in Naturally Affordable Housing, Virtual Summit.

Talk of a “housing crisis” pervades American cities—whether off-the-charts rents in coastal cities or hyper-vacancy in the Rust Belt. These problems are symptoms of a deeper dysfunction. Over nearly a century, through often well-intended top-down policy interventions, we’ve turned a complex system that should be adaptive and self-correcting into one prone to a never-ending cycle of boom and bust, crises and overcorrections.

To address the dysfunction at the root of our housing problems, we need to shift our approach. We must move away from a model in which large developers and centralized financial institutions have unprecedented sway over what is built and where, to a more antifragile housing ecosystem in which the bar to entry is low, and every neighborhood can undergo incremental change over time.

The Breaking Out of the Housing Trap presentation will help you understand the root causes of America’s interrelated housing crises, and identify some rational responses that your city (and every city) can take.

ABOUT THE INNOVATIONS IN NATURALLY AFFORDABLE HOUSING, VIRTUAL SUMMIT

This two day, online experience allows you learn from the nation’s leading innovators and experts about many different parts of a comprehensive strategy to tackle the housing crisis. This virtual summit is not targeting the traditional affordable housing developers who live in a world of complex tax credits, regulations, and housing finance—although they are welcome to attend. This is the summit for everyone else who cares about rapidly addressing your community’s affordable housing crisis.

Free Access and All-Access registration subscriptions available.

This conference is organized and hosted by the Population Health Learning Collaborative: https://improvepophealth.org/

I hope you liked this roundup, feel free to post any events I’ve forgotten in the comments. As I mentioned before, I’ll be updating this roundup regularly as I discover new events throughout the month. Make sure to follow the blog on Facebook and Instagram to get more content like this. Happy studying!

Practice Question: Quality Management

As I continue to study for ARE 5.0 Project Management, one of the areas I struggle with the most is Quality Management, but not for the reason you might think. For me, a lot of the concepts seem so obvious that it’s difficult for me to retain. So I’ll be reading it, agreeing with everything it says, but not retaining any specifics. So I’ve been trying to work on that in ways that will stay in my memory. Videos like the one below, and other tools are great visual aids to help me retain those details.

Practice Problem: Quality Management

Which of these items are not elements of a Quality Management (QM) in Construction Procurement?

  • Effective In-House Procurement Protocol
  • Beneficial Support Resources
  • Constant Monitoring and Documentation
  • Document Access and Control

Correct Answer

Document Access and Control is an Element of Quality Management in Construction Administration.

Wrong Answers

All of these items are Elements of Quality Management in Construction Procurement:

  • Effective In-House Procurement Protocol
  • Beneficial Support Resources
  • Constant Monitoring and Documentation

For reference for this question, check out AHPP Chapter 12.4.

Let me know how you did on this question, and make sure to follow RMSM Studios on Facebook and Instagram!

Practice Question: Utilization Rates

ARE 5.0 Project Management (PjM) Practice Question on firm utilization rates.

Utilization Rates are an important part of how firms track the hours spent on direct versus indirect labor, and are considered one of the 7 Key Financial Performance Indicators for architecture firms. I created this practice problem using the concept and real ways that it might change over time. Hyperfine is a great resource for practice questions and examples on both practice and project management concepts, as part of their Financial Formulas Workbook and their ARE 5.0 Courses.

Here’s a video of them going through a set of utilization rate questions.

Practice Question: Utilization Rates

The image below shows the salaries and utilization rates for the previous year for SKY Architects.

The salaries and utilization rates for this year are expected to be exactly the same, with the following changes:

  • Baboucar will be on paid paternity leave for 3 months
  • Yandeh will only be working part-time to pursue her graduate degree in historic presentation. Her utilization rate will be cut in half.

With these changes in mind, calculate the following:

  1. Estimated annual direct labor budget
  2. Yandeh R.’s estimated annual direct labor hours

Correct Answers

Question 01

In order to calculate the estimated annual budget we first need to calculate the direct labor budget for each member of staff:

  • Samuel: $170,000 * 0.5 = $85,000
  • Jeoffrey: $60,000 * 0 = $0
  • Yandeh: $90,500 salary, utilization rate = 0.8 * 0.5 = 0.4, so Yandeh’s direct salary this year will be $90,500 * 0.4 = $36,200
  • Fatou:$90,500 * 0.9 = $81,450
  • Baboucar: $70,000 salary, but he will only be working for 9 months out of 12, so we calculate 9/12 of his salary or 75%. So $70,000 * 0.75 = $52,500. With a consistent utilization rate of 0.9, his direct salary is $52,500 * 0.9 = $47,250

If we add up all of these direct salaries, we get $249,900.

Question 02

In order to calculate Yandeh’s estimated direct labor hours, we first need to determine hours per year. The number of hours in a year is 2080. Her current utilization rate is 80% but with her new graduate program, her utilization rate is reduced to 40% for this year.

So we would calculate 2080 hours * 0.4 = 832 direct labor hours this year.

Let me know how you did on this question, and make sure to follow RMSM Studios on Facebook and Instagram! Feel free to look through my blog for additional PjM Practice Questions and Mini Quizzes. You can search by tags, or by categories. If you have any questions, or you want to tell me how you did, leave a comment on the blog or on my Facebook page.

Practice Question: ADA

ARE 5.0 Practice question from RMSM Studio on the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA, which is celebrating its 30 year anniversary!

Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission at no extra cost to you. All opinions remain my own.

Try your hand at this practice problem I created today based on the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which had its 30th anniversary this week! Though this is something we study as a mandatory code to be enforced in architecture and the ARE specifically, it’s still important to remember the impact this legislation has on the lives of people everyday. You can also check out these great videos from Archicorner as a study reference for ADA design. Here’s a great video from them on the differences between ADA and Building Code Accessibility.

Here’s an additional great article from ArchDaily, which provides a simple guide to using ADA standards.

Practice Problem: ADA

The ADA prevents discrimination based on which of the following:

  • Discrimination based on gender, for employers with 15+ employees
  • Discrimination based on disability, regardless of employer size
  • Discrimination based on age, for employers with 20+ employees
  • Discrimination based on disbility, for employers with 15+ employees

ARE 5.0 Practice question from RMSM Studio on the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA, which is celebrating its 30 year anniversary!

Correct Answer

Discrimination based on disability, for employers with 15+ employees.

Wrong Answers

The Civil Right Act, Title VII prevents discrimination based on gender, race color, religion, national origin and sexual orientation for employers with 15+ employees.

ADA prevents discrimination based on disability specifically for employers with 15+ employees.

ADEA (Age Discrimination in Employment Act) prevents discrimination based on age.

Let me know how you did on this question, and make sure to follow RMSM Studios on Facebook and Instagram! For more practice questions you can check out my mini quizzes, or some of the awesome practice exams created by Designer Hacks (which I just used today, got a 77% lol) and the Walking the ARE Practice Exams. As always, happy studying!

Mini Quiz: Project Management

Mini Quiz from RMSM Studio on the Project Planning and Management

I’ve created these questions based on the Ballast Review Manual, which you can find for on Amazon, or search for a used version in the ARE Facebook Group. The Ballast Review Manual comes very highly recommended for multiple ARE exams, and you can check out the Young Architect website for a 15% off discount from PPI2Pass.

Question 01

Within the Critical Path Method (CPM), which items are denoted by a solid arrow?

  • Dummies
  • Tasks
  • The Critical Path
  • Dependencies

Question 02

Which elements form part of the project work plan? (Select all that apply)

  • Allocation of time and fees
  • Staff Required
  • Instruments of service
  • Milestones
  • Contingencies
  • Consultant work and fees

Question 03

Architects should consider the follow issues when assembling a project team, except for: (Select one)

  • Billing Rates
  • Project Size and Complexity
  • Personalities
  • Contractor Experience

Question 04

What is the typical fee percentage for Design Development?

  • 15%
  • 20%
  • 30%
  • 40%

Question 01

Within the Critical Path Method (CPM), which items are denoted by a solid arrow?

  • Tasks

Dummies are represented by dashed arrows, as opposed to the heavy dashed arrows which show the Critical Path. Dummies are another name for Dependencies.

Ballast, page 4-6

Question 02

Which elements form part of the project work plan? (Select all that apply)

  • Allocation of time and fees
  • Staff Required
  • Milestones
  • Consultant work and fees

Though the project can be broken down into phases and individual tasks, the instruments of service themselves are not an element of the project work plan.

Although time and fees allocated to the project can both include contingencies, contingencies themselves are not an element of the project work plan.

Ballast, page 4-8

Question 03

Architects should consider the follow issues when assembling a project team, except for: (Select one)

  • Contractor Experience

Architects do not make the selection for contractors, though contractors can be a part of the overall project team.

Ballast, page 4-4

Question 04

What is the typical fee percentage for Design Development?

  • 20%

On a typical design-bid-build project, the fee percentages are as follows:

Schematic Design: 15%

Design Development: 20%

Construction Documentation: 40%

Bidding: 5%

Contract Administration: 20%

Ballast, page 4-9

I hope you like this mini quiz. Let me know how you did in the comments, or on the RMSM Studio Facebook page. If you got none of them right, it’s time to hit the books!

If you’re studying for Project Management, feel free to check out my other Mini Quiz on the A201, and if you’re studying for Construction & Evaluation, check out my Mini Quiz on C401.

If you want to find other great practice tests, you can also have a look at my One Minute Reviews, where I give my feedback on ARE study materials in under a minute.

Mini Quiz: AIA Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct

Mini Quiz from RMSM Studio on the AIA Code of Ethics and Professional COnduct 2018

I’ve created these questions based on the 2018 AIA Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct, which you can find for free here. This is a very short, easy to read document, but very important to professional practice.

Question 01

Which Ethical Standards fall under Canon VI: Obligations to the Environment?

  • Alternative energy sources
  • Building materials
  • Indoor Air Quality
  • None of the Above

Question 02

Penalties imposed by the National Ethics Council include: (Select all that apply)

  • Censure, with appeal
  • Admonition, with appeal
  • Litigation, with appeal
  • Suspension of membership, with appeal
  • Termination of membership, without appeal

Question 03

An architect wants to file a claim against another architect using Rule 4.101 of the Code of Ethics. What actions must they take?

  • Consult their legal counsel
  • Ensure proof of violation of one other rule
  • Consult their insurance company
  • Ensure proof of fraud based on an independent finding of a violation of the law

Question 04

What Canon does this statement fall within:

Members shall continually seek to raise the standards of aesthetic excellence, architectural education, research, training, and practice.

  • Canon II: Obligations to the Public
  • Canon I: General Obligations
  • Canon V: Obligations to Colleagues
  • Canon IV: Obligations to the Profession

Question 01

Which Ethical Standard fall under Canon VI: Obligations to the Environment?

  • Building materials

All other answers are not ethical standards under Canon VI: Obligations to the Environment.

Question 02

Penalties imposed by the National Ethics Council include: (Select all that apply)

  • Censure, with appeal
  • Admonition, with appeal
  • Suspension of membership, with appeal

Litigation is not a penalty imposed by the Natinoal Ethics Council. All penalties allow for appeal procedures, so “Termination of membership, without appeal” is incorrect.

Question 03

An architect wants to file a claim against another architect using Rule 4.101 of the Code of Ethics. What actions must they take?

  • Ensure proof of violation of one other rule

Under Canon IV: Obligations to the Profession: “Enforcement of Rule 4.101 refers to and supports enforcement of other Rules. A violation of Rule 4.101 cannot be established without proof of a pertinent violation of at least one other Rule.”

Question 04

What Canon does this statement fall within:

Members shall continually seek to raise the standards of aesthetic excellence, architectural education, research, training, and practice.

  • Canon I: General Obligations

I hope you like this mini quiz. Let me know how you did in the comments, or on the RMSM Studio Facebook page. If you’re studying for Practice Management, feel free to check out my other Mini Quiz on the A201 and my post on passing the PcM Exam, and if you’re studying for Construction & Evaluation, check out my Mini Quiz on C401.

If you want to find other great practice tests, you can also have a look at my One Minute Reviews, where I give my feedback on ARE study materials in under a minute.

4 Questions to Help Save Up For the ARE 5.0 Exams

I think we all got sticker shock when we first found out how expensive it would be to take these exams. For those of us with student loans, it can sometimes feel like adding insult to injury. A couple of my initial questions were:

$235 per exam? Every time? Even if you Fail? With a 50% pass rate? For Each of the 6 Exams? In this economy? With student loans? Not including study materials?

Me, in my head

But at a certain point in time, you realize that if you’ve committed to this process, you’re just going to have to get over it. If you want to be an architect, this is unfortunately the current price of entry.

So how can you save for your exams in a way that meshes with your study speed, and inclusive of possible fails? Here are the 4 important questions to ask yourself:

1. How Frequently Do You Want To Test?

How long do you think it will take you to study for each test? This will vary per person, some people willing to do it once every two weeks, and some giving themselves 1-2 months to study for each exam. My original plan was to study for 6 weeks for each exam.

There is a recommendation to study for a longer period if it is your very first exam. This can mean that you study for 2 months (8 weeks) instead, which can be great in that it allows you more time to save. You can find more information in helpful forums such as the NCARB ARE 5.0 Community or the ARE Facebook Group, that can give you more insight into how long you should study for your specific exam.

If you know that you aren’t planning to test right away, it can also be a good idea to save up a nest egg of testing funds. That way, when you finally decide to start testing, the financial aspect of it will be less of a stressor for you, and allow you to schedule retakes faster.

2. How Often Do You Get Paid?

This will vary from person to person. I personally get paid every 2 weeks. If I take an exam every 6 weeks, that gives me 3 paychecks to save up for each exam. This breaks each $235 exam into much more manageable payments of $79 per paycheck (I always round up to avoid missing some cents).

I would also recommend that you continue to keep saving even after you’ve saved enough for 6 exams. I found this very helpful video from Pluralsight when I first started testing, that explained that due to the high fail rates for the ARE, you should mentally take the cost of 3 exams and throw it away. That comes to around $705 based off the current exam fees.

This seems like a lot, because it is,. However, I think it makes a lot more sense to plan for, and save for, losing that money instead of becoming paralysed with guilt and worry when you eventually fail. Michael Riscica of Young Architect has written several great articles on dealing with failing your exams (here’s one), but just remember that the financial burden of it is something you can plan for now.

3. Will The Money Be Safe In Your Checking Account?

I don’t mean safe in that your bank may lose your money, I mean safe in that you might spend it all by accident. If you know that you struggle with financial management and personal finance in general, one of the best things you can do for your exam funds is to put it a completely separate account, ideally at a different bank.

This may seem like overkill, but I think that using this method has been one of the main reasons that I have been so successful in my exam savings.

Currently I use a separate online banking savings account, with no monthly fees, that has a 3 day waiting period before the money can be transferred back into my account. I can’t think of a better way to nip impulse buys in the bud. It is also a great feeling, when you finally take that money out, and you know you’re putting it towards something important.

4. Does Your Office Reimburse You For Passing An Exam?

Different offices have different levels of incentive for their exams. At my firm, they do not pay for the exams up front, they only reimburse you after you have successfully passed an exam that you paid for. This makes things much easier for me, in that I can take any money that I get back for a passed exam, and immediately reinvest it in a new seat credit.

There can sometimes be a temptation to go out and spend this money as a celebration for having passed, but trust me, putting it back into your NCARB account immediately is a much safer bet, and can help insure you against any hiccups in your budget down the line.

Find out what your office is willing to finance and what their policies are, in terms of sponsoring exams, books and other digital study materials. Collaborating with other people taking the exams within your office to get all the supplies you need is a great strategy to maximize your dollars spent on materials.

I hope these questions were helpful to you. For budget conscious candidates, I’m still offering my ARE 5.0 PcM Study Guide for free until the end of April, so make sure to download your copy before May 1st 2020.

If you have any further questions, hit me up in the comments.

My Number One Rule for Buying ARE Study Materials

When you first decide to take the ARE, you will normally go into full research mode. You treat it like a site you are doing analysis on, combing the net for study materials, handy guides, YouTube tutorials and practice questions, exam focused blog posts (guilty!), everything you can get your hands on. You assemble a treasure trove of PDF documents and a wish list full of textbooks and online courses, and you start reading. Fast forward a few hours, and you are completely overwhelmed.

The ARE is full of SO MUCH CONTENT and the sheer amount of information that you need to not just absorb, but be able to use for problem solving, can be extremely intimidating. What can be even scarier, if you’ve been working for a while in the field, is the practice of unlearning what you thought you knew, and memorizing the way that NCARB wants you practice. This can make you second guess your own memory and possibly your own professional judgement.

I got to this same point after ordering my Ballast book. I love to read, like LOVE to read, but this seemed like taking a good thing too far. There’s a difference between sitting down with a nice thick book and reading for pleasure, and sitting down with a thick book and being expected to memorize and analyze its contents.

The study guides, contracts, online resources, and the other miscellaneous PDFs I had collected and bought as part of my search for information, were also confusing. With this much data, how is it possible to prioritize and process all that I read?

This lead me to my number one rule for ARE Study Materials:

AHPP (Architect’s Handbook of Professional Practice) First! No New Study Materials Until It’s Finished!

I created this rule for myself for a few important reasons:

  1. I have a habit of collecting a lot of data for the sake of saying that I have the information, then not reading it. This will save me a lot of wasted time in gathering studying materials that I will actually not use. 
  2. The AHPP is frequently considered required reading by those who take the exam. I’ve seen many people mention just this textbook, along with the contracts and rules of conduct, as their only required materials for passing the PcM (Practice Management Exam).
  3. You have help in determining what is essential! Namour Wright collaborated with Wiley publishing to create very helpful guides regarding which elements of the AHPP were critical reading for each specific ARE exam. 
  4. If I can’t commit to finishing this book, there is no reason for me to be flushing additional money or time down the drain looking at less comprehensive content. The AHPP is a big book, but the information it contains is crucial information for all 6 ARE exams. It is the only reference listed in the ARE 5.0 Handbook which has content used in the development of all 6 of the exams. Check out this references page from NCARB which illustrates my point. 
NCARB Reference Guide for AHPP

So even though it is important to cross train with other materials, use multiple references, and understand and read through other documents, I still put the completion of this document as my number one priority, and until you finish it, I wouldn’t put another cent into buying anything else. You can buy the AHPP on Amazon, or directly from Wiley Publishing. 

There are also pre-owned copies online, and often you can already find a copy at your architecture firm, as people who have studied in your firm like to keep it around as a reference in their practice.

What text would you consider an essential item for this exam? Let me know in the comments! Happy studying!

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